Volume 3
October 2, 2016
School Newsletter
…Coming Up…
MAP Assessments
MAP assessments will take place
October 3-20th
Swim Squad
Swim squad trials will take
place October 3rd and 4th
Welcome from the Principal…
Quran Program
The Quran program will begin
October 9th
Football Squad
Second round of football
squad trials will take place
October 10th and 11th
iPad workshops
Dear Parents,
The last two weeks have provided a number of opportunities for parents to
visit the school. First of all, we held two Curriculum Evenings, where parents
learnt about the courses their children would be following and how they
could support their learning. Then, we held our Parent Teacher conferences
the following week. The support of parents is very important in helping
children to develop and do their best and I would like to thank all those that
have already shown an interest in attending these important events.
MAP tests for Grades 2 to 8 will soon be upon us, so students will need all
the parental encouragement they can get to perform at their best.
Workshops for parents about
iPads and their use in school
will be held October 19th and
20th
Character Dress Up
Thursday October 27th the
library will organize a day
where students can dress as
their favorite character from a
book they’ve read!
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We have also enjoyed Tech Week with the Computer Explorers Team from
Little World, the Military Programme and trials for the Football and
Swimming Squads are well under way and ECAs have commenced. We have
also begun taking requests for students to join our Qu'ran Memorisation
programme.
This really has been a busy and exciting time at SZPAB. Please keep informed
about everything that is happening by reading Newsletters, texts, e-mails
and by visiting our website.
Yours in Education
John Conway
Principal / CEO
SZPAB
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October 2, 2016
To Remember…
GR 6-8 Ski Trip
iPad Forms
This week some students received a letter about a ski trip to France that the
school is hoping to run in March 2017. As part of the ADEC approval
process we are required to receive letters of interest from students and
parents before we can move forward. With that in mind, if your child
brought home a letter about the trip and you would like him to attend,
please complete and return. Due to international insurance law all pupils
must be a minimum age of 12 at the time of the trip. The trip is not yet
approved and we anticipate that this will take time. As soon as we receive
further information we will notify you accordingly.
If you have paid for your
iPad, please remember to
sign and return the
agreement form. If your child
has not brought a form
home, please contact your
child’s teacher.
Artsonia
Please remember to sign
into your Artsonia account.
Please see page 4 for more
information.
Gate Opening Times
If you are dropping students
off before 7:15am you must
use Gate 1. For safety
reasons we cannot open
gates 2, 3 or 4 before
7:15am. Teacher supervision
starts at 7:30am. We have
made provision for extra
supervision in the main
Reception. In the afternoon
Gates 2, 3 and 4 will close at
3:30. All students will then
move to the main reception
to be collected.
This month in the library…
Beginning in October, SZPAB libraries will plan monthly
student projects and a themed event to encourage
children’s literacy and self-development. The theme for
each month will be in line with the ‘My Identity’ Program.
This month’s theme is Respect.
Students will be encouraged to check-out books from the fiction, biography,
literature and Arabic sections. These areas will be heavily populated with
books which surround skills of decision making, strength in character, and the
experience of self-improvement. To celebrate this initiative,
Thursday, October 27th students will be encouraged to
dress as a book character which they think shows respect
or positive morals.
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Last Week at SZPAB…
October 2, 2016
Exciting Tech Week at SZPAB!
Last week, students in Grades 3 to 8 were lucky enough to take
part in our first Tech Week, which was delivered by Computer
Explorers, who run an ECA at school. This included two special
assemblies and some very interesting workshops.
Some students tried circuit engineering by making sound
circuits with play dough. Other students had the opportunity to
become forensic scientists and used powerful digital
microscopes to examine different substances closely.
Alongside these workshops, there were sessions on robotics
and a coding challenge, where the students had to complete
twenty coding activities as quickly as possible.
During the assemblies, the ‘teacherbots’ were programmed by
some student volunteers and they got to see Mr Ray and Mr
Brandon star in a video where they entered an exciting robotic
world!
Jennifer from Computer Explorers was very impressed with the
children’s enthusiasm and behavior. Talking to the students,
they seemed to thoroughly enjoy the workshops. One Grade 4
exclaimed ‘I hope we can have Tech Week every week!’
There will be more opportunities during the year for the
students to take part in tech activities.
Military Training Program
Grades 6 to 8 continue their year-long Military
Training Program this week. Through a series of drills
and discipline, this program, unique to SZPAB, is
aimed at getting children ready and excited for their
U.A.E. military service.
Hijra New Year
Last Thursday, students participated in an assembly
to celebrate the Hijra New Year. The students
enjoyed showing how the migration (Hijrah) of the
Prophet PBUH occurred. The assembly concluded
with a song about the Hijrah,” Talaa Albadr Alaina”.
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Treasure Box Donations…
Some Kindergarten classes will be encouraging and rewarding
appropriate or exemplary school behaviors by allowing
students to select a ‘prize’ from a treasure box. Please donate
any gently used toys that your child is no longer using.
Students in grades 1 through 3 can give the toys to their
teacher which will then be collected. Students in grades 4
through 8 can bring their donations to the Learning Support
room on the 3rd floor. Thank you in advance for your assistance
and generosity!
Reminder to sign into
your Artsonia
account…
This year in art class students in
grades 4-8 will participate in
Artsonia, an online children’s art
museum. Students will be
documenting their own art
projects and uploading them for
you and your loved ones to see.
As a parent you can look at your
child’s artwork anywhere and
anytime. You can add family
members to your child’s fan club,
write comments and help support
SZPAB’s arts program. All that is
needed is permission for your
child’s artwork to be showcased.
Permission slips will be sent home
with access codes this week.
Parents are asked to visit
Artsonia.com/permission to allow
access. Please email
christina.schweitzer@zayedacade
myboys.ae if you have any
The importance of self-esteem
Friendships and social interaction are extremely important for selfesteem. But it doesn’t come naturally to everyone. We want our
children to succeed in the social world, to learn how to cooperate,
make friends, and negotiate conflicts. We want them to develop
strong perspective-taking skills, and treat other people with
fairness and compassion. Making friends takes practice, and you
can help your child by rehearsing social situations and role playing
ahead of time. Ideas for helping your child improve social
interactions include:
Communication skills: by asking about their day, asking what they
did during the day then listening to what they have to say.
Frequently ask questions about how they felt during the day.
Role playing: take turns making different facial expressions, the
importance of this game includes teaching children how to read
other peoples feelings, making them aware of how others are
feeling.
Asking for permission: children should be aware that they should
request permission before taking something that isn’t theirs,
teaching respect.
Turn taking: children should play games that involve taking turns,
teaching them patience, tolerance and building friendships.
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Swim Squad
Coming Up…
We are thinking of putting together rugby and
basketball squads in Term 2. For more information,
please contact the PE Department.
Swimming Squad Trials will take place Monday and
Tuesday at lunchtime. Please remind your child to be
on time – trails begin at 12:35. Students can sign up in
the PE office.
• Monday October 3rd GR 5-6
• Tuesday October 4th - GR 7-8
Football Squad…
Football Squad Training will now take place on
Tuesdays 3.15- 4pm. Please see Mr. Josh for
information.
To be eligible to join the squad you must be able to:
• Swim in deep water.
• Swim more than 25 meters.
• Swim 25 meters in under 28 seconds with
good technique.
New Football Trials
If you were not selected for football squad, there is
one last opportunity to try out. If you are interested,
please sign up at the PE Office. Trials will take place:
• Monday October 10th – GR 5- 6
• Tuesday October 11th – GR 7-8
Swimming Schedule Changes…
•6A will finish their
swimming unit next
week (October 6th).
They will move on to a
new sport and will
need their PE kit.
•7D, 8A and 8B will
start their swimming
unit October 10th.
Please make sure they
bring the correct swim
kit.
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